Automobile bumper



May 4 y W. J. GROTENHUIS AUTOMOBILE BUMPER Filed Nov. 21, 1925 v||||||11 E Hill! ...""lnmnmm 9 6 5 num Mmmm'y Patented May 4, 1926.

UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE.

WILLIAMVJ. eROTENHUs, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIs, Assienon rro IsIrLnXPRODUCTS CORPORATION, OF WAUKEGAN, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION or DELAWARE.

AUTOMOBTLE BUMPER.

Application filed November 21,' 1925. Serial No. 70,467.

To oZZ whom t 'may concern) Be it known that I, "WILLIAM (l.Gnofrmvi-IUis, a citizen ot the. United States Ot America, and aresident ot Chicago, in the county ot Cook and State ot Illinois, haveinvented ay certain new and usetul Improvement in Automobile Bumpers, ofwhich the 'follmvingsY is a speciiication,

This invention relates to improvements in automobile bumpers, and moreparticularly to bumpers for protectingthe rear ot a. vehicle,consisting;l of a pair of bumper units extending lateraly trom the endthereof and disposed rearwardly in line with tenders, said units beingconnected together by a bar oliset inwardly from the plane ot the bumperunits, and toward the body o the car thus providing an intervening spacetor the spart tire or wheel.

The object ot' the invention is to provide a bumper which may be readilylengthened or shortened to compensate for differences in width betweentrame members in different makes of vehicles, and at the same timelocate the bumper units in proper position with respect to the tenders.

A preferred embodiment;V ot the invention is disclosed in theaccompanying drawing, in which- Figure l is a view in front elevationoit the bumper as mounted on the. rear ot a vehicle;

Figure 2 is a top plan View of the bumper; and

Figure 3 is a perspective View ot one ot the bumper units and a port-ionot the connecting' bar.

is clearly shown in Figures l and Q, the complete bumper consists of twoend sections or units l, 1 and an intermediate bar or connecting member2, the latter consist-- ing` ot a bar Ot steel having a straight centralsection 2a and end-portions 2b, 2" bent at right angles and extending`outwardly trom the rear ot the car. The bumper units 1, 1 are detachablyconnected to these end portions by means ot bolts, as will be presentlydescribed, and extend outwardly in substantially the same plane as thespare wheel or tire A.

As thus disclosed, each bumper unit is made up of two lengths ot barstock l and 5, one bent into a. complete loop and the other formino' anauxiliary bar extending throughout the end portion Ot the unit.

These bars are ollset vertically one above Ythe other to form aY widenedimpact area,

their ends beine' brought into 'liatwise contact and preferably clampedtogether in front and riveted togget ier at the rear. Thus, intermediatethe forward portion ot the unit, as shown in Figure 3, ay clamp 6'secures the overlapping portions ot the bars together, the bar 4 beingoutside, and bent rear fardly a short distance bof-fond the clamp toform a transverse end section 7, uniting` with the other extremity otthe same bar, by a bolt 8 passingl through the two ends ot the bar,which come into tiatwise contact by bending the opposite end into thesame plane. rThe inner end oi the auxiliary bar follows the outer ormain bar et, beyond the right-angled bend of the transverse section 7,terminating midway ot the same, and secured by another.' bolt 9. Theopposite end of the auxiliary bar 5 is riveted at 10 to the main bar 4f,at the rear and near the Outer end of the unit.

As clearly shown, the end portions 2" ot the intermediate connecting bnr2, li-e fiatwise along the transverse section of each bumper unit andarel attached thereto by the bolts 8 and 9.

Thus it is possible to readily assemble a bumper to iit any make ofvehicle by selecting' the connecting bar of the required length, l

thereby avoiding the necessity ot carrying in stock a large variety ofbumpers made up in different lengths to meet the requirements ot'ditierent makes ot vehicles.

As shown in Figure 2, the assembled bumper' is attached to the vehicleby means ot iittings il, which are secured to the ends oi the tramemembers l2, and clamped to the rear portion of bar 4t oit each bumperunit, adjacent its inner end.

Having set tOi-th a preferred embodiment ot my invention, I claim:

l. A bumper comprisingl impact sections, each consisting ot a bar bentto term a closed loop having a straight transverse portion at its innerend and an intermediate bar provided with end portions bent at rightangles thereto and connected in tlatwise Contact with the transverse andend portions ot said impact sections.

2. In the bumper the combination of bumper sections spaced aparthorizontally to provide for a spare wheel therebetween, au intermediatebar provided with arms extending' trai'isversely on opposite sides olsaid wheel, each section oon'iprising' a resilient har lient to lornl aloop and liXed at each end adjacent the outer and inner endsrespectively ot the arins of Said intermedi.- ate har.

3. The eon'iliination with a vehicle having a spare tire mounted at therear thereof, ot a huuuger havin.;r end sections mounted on the vehicletraine at opposite sides of said Wheel7 an intermediate har extendinglietweensaid sections and havingl portions bent at right angles toprovide a space therebetween Yfor said wheel, said end sectionsCoinprisingr resilient hars lient into loop torres with their endsbolted in tlatwise Contact ith said arn'is.

4i. A hninper eoii'iiiirising laterally spaced buniper units, eachConsisting of a har shaped to torin a closed loop having' a straightytransverse portion at its inner end7 and an intermediate connecting barprovided with transverse end portions adapted lor Atlatwise Contact(with said transverse portions ot' said units7 and bolts passing` throughsaid contacting portions of said bar and hun'iper unit.

A bumper roinln'isingv laterally spaced impari: units each consisting'ot' resilient bars shaped to Jforni a complete loop having` their outerend portions spaced apart vertically to forni au inipaet area ofincreased Width, and their inn r portions bent to forni a straighttransverse portion? and a single 'connecting bar having' lient endport-ions adapted to eX- tend throughout the transverse portions of saidiinpaet units, and loolts extending` through said Contacting portions.

lVLLIAB/ J. GROTENHUIQ.

